Royal Engineers Sgt john(jack)Freeman Italy including monte casino Anzio Salerno San Marino etc

My uncle jack was mentioned in dispatches I am wanting to learn about the path he took during his war years I cannot get his service record as his only child Tony will not give me permission to so I am in this search blind. He was a lovely man just like his brother my dad. Who was a Chindits in Burma .

 

Our Bill

Any idea which unit he was in as their war diaries would help you trace his movements..but it would appear that some family "legends " are at work here as it is not likely that he would have been at Salerno - Cassino - Anzio - and San

Marino et al as we weren't that short of Engineers in Italy as most Divisions had some of their own...but one never knows - he might have been a specialist in something of other

Good luck
Cheers

 

Thanks for your interest Tom but none of our family know anything at all about uncle jacks war years .The information I have put on here was from that Forces war records sight and I just printed off the info and put it on here and it looked so official on that sight . I think thanks to you guys on here I will have the best history lesson ever . Do you think I should remove the post and wait until I do get his service record and I think the lesson for me today is not to go on the Forces war records again . Tom thank you for the link I enjoyed reading it . Elsie

 

Elsie, I've just sent you a private message.

 

Elsie

Leave it be as one never knows what can happen to-morrow....there are many ex engineers on the forum - you see Italy was divided in two sectors with the US 5th Army on the West of the Appenines and the British 8th Army

on the Eastern sector - so your uncle would have to be jumping from one to the other to be in all of those battles..but it could happen as we supplied two Divisions up to ROME - then after that we had six British Divisions in the US Army...

This forum is full of History by people who were there at the time - and many experts who weren't there at all...!

Cheers

 

Our Bill
Have you tried looking on the London Gazette website to try and find your uncles Mentioned in Despatches, if you
find this then it will give you further information about his unit.

Once you have found the unit then you can look through the units war diaries which are kept a Kew to find out what your uncle did

RE Units Involved at Anzio include

23 Field Company RE
238 Field Company RE
248 Field Company RE

6 Field Park Coy RE

1 Bridging Platoon RE

 

Thank you so much Oldman and yes I did look on the London Gazette and found it but will go back there and check unit and once again Thank you for your advice and help. I really do appreciate it Elsie

 

Hi old bill re checked London Gazette supplement no unit number just Corps of Royal Engineers issue 36668 24th August 1944 . Corporal (acting Sargent ) 2011530 j Freeman.

 

You can still get service records without a NOK approval but you don't get the personal stuff. You will still get what you need - dates joined and left and units he served with. The war diaries will tell you the rest.

 

Update for my. Uncle jack received this this morning so onward and upwards Thanks to all who have chipped in and pointed me in the right direction .


Division R.E
Unit TN (British) section A.F.H.Q
Cpl A/sgt

Cpl j freeman(A/sgt) formed part of the TN Recce party in the assault at SALERNO He was the NCO in charge of the small detachment of O.Rs which landed over the beaches on D day and entered Salerno on the 11th of September . He was in Salerno until the 14th September when he was ordered to return to the beaches. During the whole time he was under shell fire and attacked by bombing, His conduct under these very trying conditions was exemplary His personal bearing and the manner in which he controlled the men were excellent . The cool collective manner in which he carried out his duties was in the best tradition of the Royal Engineers

Honour of award BEM

Got a new printer at Christmas to help me print my family tree and war details of dad and his brother And its supposed to scan but I cannot get it to so when my son/daughter pop in will get them to look at it. But one way or another will get the docs on here

 

I attach a copy of the recommendation for his award. Although he was initially recommended for a BEM he only got a "Mention"

John

 

Horsapassenger Thanks for putting it on . You guys never fail to amaze me how can you find information that fast it's all a mystery to me l spent roughly 12hrs yesterday on the national Archive site and got no where and l had the ref numbers and ThankYou for your imput . I just love this site and you lads and lasses. l tell you what l find interesting when I click on people like yourselves profile and read your topics I just lose track of time as you senior members seem right characters and I so enjoy reading your links . ThankYou to you all for going public with your info and wonderful stories I enjoy reading them so much kind regards Elsie